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Reviewer:Laura Larregola
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December 16, 2011 Subject:
Use a sequence of the The Open Mind - Donald Rumsfeld

I am working on a TV documentary about health and food for a TV3, Television of Catalonia (Spain)
We are interested in a sequence in this document:
it is a Donald Rumsfeld sentence.
We need around 10 seconds.
Can we use it for free?

I am working on a TV documentary about health and food. It will aired at the end of the year on ARTE, the French and German speaking TV. The director, Marie-Monique Robin, points out how decisions are taken concerning pesticides and other stuffs which are inside food.

We are interested in a sequence in this document :
it is a Donald Rumsfeld sentence.
We need around 10 seconds.
Could you tell us how we can get a broadcast quality to insert in our documentary ?

I thank you in advance for your quick reply.
Best regards.
Anne Gelli
film researcher
INA PROD

I've got to say - it seems like all Rumsfeld is interested in doing is saying what he expects his audience would want to hear. He avoids answering the questions, particularly about the Nixon administration, with a devotion that's amazing. I guess it's nothing new, but my impression is that he's incapable of a genuine discussion, and is always communicating through some persona of respect for democracy that his actions do not reflect.

Rumsfeld gives some key insite to the White House and how the people in it make the decisions that effect us today. However I would not say that he did not apply his knowledge prior to the Iraq War in 2003, if anything, he used his knowledge to launch a center of operations to combat Terrorism on their own soil. Mr. Ho was just ranting.

The best part is in the middle (between minutes 13 and 16) where Rummy describes the advantages of open decision making over closed decision making. In short, the quality of decisions in an open process is much higher because the President has access to many more points of view and is better prepared for the consequences of his actions.

In contrast, closed decision making usually produces lousy decisions, because the President is isolated from the wider community and relies on a cabal for his information. The cabal, in turn, develops a case of groupthink and will be surprised when the real world does not respond according to their theories.

It is a shame that he was not able to apply those lessons before the invasion of Iraq in 2003.

Regardless of your political views, I believe this episode is worth watching if you're interested in the gov't. A little over half way, Rusmfeld lays out his prior DC career, beginning in '57. Wow...that guy